Reading, Writing & Pondering

Joni Eareckson Tada's story is one of the first that I heard as a young Believer. I like this new biography about her for children from the Do Great Things for God series. Kristyn Getty writes about Joni in a way that is easy to read and understand. The illustrations work well with the story to help young reader's visualize the story better. Subtitled, The Girl Who Learned to Follow God in a Wheelchair, this book roughly measures 9 1/2 by 7 1/2 inches, a good size for the age group it is aimed at--ages four to seven to learn from. This book is especially helpful for children to see that some people have challenges and are differently abled. As this book shows, God still loves them and works in their lives.  I like that there is a timeline at the back of the book showing the important events in Joni's life. There is also a prayer to pray for those who are not Believers. There are questions to think about. Then the last two pages of the book show some work sheets that can be...

      The Story of Abraham Lincoln by Patricia Pingry is part of the "Story of" series from Worthy Kids. As we look to celebrate President's Day in February, this would be a great book to read to toddlers to help them understand who President Abraham Lincoln was and a bit of American History. The Story of Abraham Lincoln is about 200 words, 24 pages and is a roughly six-inch square board book. The pages are card board and should be easy for little hands to turn the pages. There are some big words in this book, like emancipation proclamation, so most likely it is a book that would be read to a child, at least to start with. However, I like that it gets children thinking about American history and gives them a bit of history to later expand on. The pictures are brightly colored and so eye-catching. I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions within this review are my own.

The Story of George Washington by Patricia A. Pingry is a part of the "Story Of" reader series from Worthy Kids. This is a great series to get children thinking about United States history. The Story of George Washington helps children see the basics of who George Washington was, learn the basics of the story of the cherry tree, see his influence on the beginning of our country and know that he was our first President. While some of the words may be a little big, as a whole this is a great book. Parents can fill in some of the gaps orally if questions are asked and explain in more details or help children find the answers they are looking for.  With Presidents Day coming up in February, this would make a great book to put in a toddler's library. The book contains about 200 words, is 24 pages long and has brightly-colored eye-catching pictures. The book measures about six inches square so would be easy for small hands to hold and turn the pages. The Story of George Washi...